Historic building renamed for Eisenhower

On Tuesday, Bush formally marked the renaming of the Old Executive Office Building for President Eisenhower.

From Christy BrennanCNN Washington

WASHINGTON (CNN) --President Bush Tuesday dedicated a display to honor the late President Dwight Eisenhower at a building next to the White House.

Administration officials called the event a "renaming" of the Old Executive Office Building, but the actual renaming occurred more than two years ago.

On November 9, 1999, President Clinton signed legislation to rename the Old Executive Office Building the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Although he did not hold a specific event on November 9, he mentioned the signing in an event to honor the Little Rock Nine and recognized several of President Eisenhower's relatives who were present at the event.

There is a plaque on the gate outside the building reading that on this date, the building was renamed in memory of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. A ceremonial signing was held on January 2000, at which the President was accompanied by family members John and Susan Eisenhower.

Tueday's event was a formal dedication and an unveiling of the bust of President Eisenhower, which the Bush administration says had never been done. Susan Eisenhower, the granddaughter of the former President, participated in the ceremony, along with Secretary of State Colin Powell, Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz and GSA Administrator Stephen Perry. This event was originally scheduled for September 14 but was postponed after the terrorist attacks.

Eisenhower during World War II commanded the Allied Forces landing in North Africa in 1942 and was the Supreme Commander of the troops invading France on D-Day, 1944.

The building was constructed between 1871 and 1888 for the then Departments of State, War, and Navy.

Among the historical events that occurred in this building, Japanese emissaries met here with Secretary of State Cordell Hull after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

Since 1949, the building has been used by various agencies of the Executive Office of the President, including the Office of the Vice President, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and the National Security Council.